**Labubu's Are Everything Wrong With Society — Transcript & Summary | SozAI** Source: https://sozai.app/transcript/labubu-everything-wrong-society/ Exploring the cultural impact and controversies of Labubu collectibles, revealing dark consumerism and societal manipulation. ## Key Takeaways - Labubu collectibles reveal how consumer culture manipulates people through status and scarcity. - Blind box marketing preys on psychological tendencies to complete collections, fueling excessive spending. - The craze highlights societal issues such as economic pressures on youth and the search for identity. - Collecting can foster community but also lead to negative outcomes like crime and financial loss. - Labubu serves as a cultural symbol of the dark side of modern consumption and corporate influence. ## What the video covers - Labubu collectibles, created by artist Casing Lung, originated as playful fictional female elves in a children's story. - Despite their kind-hearted backstory, many find Labubu dolls creepy due to their sinister smiles and teeth. - PopMart, a Beijing-based company, popularized Labubu through blind box sales, creating a cult following and massive hype. - Blind box marketing exploits human psychology, encouraging consumers to complete sets and chase rare secret figures. - The craze around Labubu reflects broader issues of mindless consumption and societal pressures on younger generations. - Collectors spend significant amounts annually, with some basing social connections and identities around these toys. - Labubu's popularity has led to real-world consequences, including crime and violence related to the collectibles. - The video compares Labubu to past collectible crazes like Beanie Babies, highlighting the risks of speculative collecting. - Labubu symbolizes the darker side of consumer culture and how corporations manipulate desires for status and belonging. - Ultimately, Labubu is portrayed not just as a toy but as a symptom of deeper societal and economic problems. ## Chapters 1. 00:00 Introduction: Labubu and Society's Consumption Issues 2. 01:25 Origins of Labubu: The Monsters Trilogy and Artist Background 3. 02:45 Public Perception: Creepy or Cute? 4. 04:05 The Collecting Culture and Community Around Labubu 5. 05:30 Blind Box Marketing and Consumer Psychology 6. 06:55 Economic Impact and Real-World Consequences 7. 11:26 Celebrity Influence and Market Hype 8. 12:22 Comparisons to Past Collectible Fads 9. 14:09 Conclusion: Labubu as a Symbol of Dark Consumer Culture Answers ## Questions about this video What are Labubu collectibles and where did they originate? Labubu collectibles are toys based on fictional female elves created by artist Casing Lung, originally part of a children's story called the Monsters Trilogy. Why do some people find Labubu dolls creepy? Many find Labubu dolls creepy because of their teeth and sinister smiles, which contrast with their intended kind-hearted character design. How does blind box marketing influence consumer behavior with Labubu? Blind box marketing creates excitement and compulsion to complete sets by hiding rare secret figures, exploiting psychological tendencies and driving excessive spending. ## Full Transcript — Download SRT & Markdown 00:00 Speaker A Whenever it feels like we are making progress towards a society that refuses to fall victim to mindless consumption or we are having honest conversations about how young people can't afford houses or have families, something like Lebu comes around and destroys all faith in humanity. 00:14 Speaker A in humanity. Now, there's nothing wrong with having a collection, music, trading cards, comic books, coins, seashells, whatever brings you joy, especially if you are a child, but something about Leubu feels off. It feels less like a genuine collection and more of a hollow 00:30 Speaker A Now, there's nothing wrong with having a collection: music, trading cards, comic books, coins, seashells, whatever brings you joy, especially if you are a child, but something about Lebu feels off. It feels less like a genuine collection and more of a hollow trophy that people convince themselves they need because someone with millions of followers attached it to their purse. 00:37 Speaker A It's the illusion of status packaged into an evil looking doll that proves how easily we're manipulated by major corporations. But the crazy part is this is not the first time something like this has happened. And we're not even 00:49 Speaker A It's the illusion of status packaged into an evil-looking doll that proves how easily we're manipulated by major corporations. But the crazy part is this is not the first time something like this has happened. And we're not even embarrassed to admit that we keep falling for it. 01:00 Speaker A just how far people are willing to go for Laboo, you'll understand why this isn't just a dumb toy. It's a symptom of something much worse. Before Laboos became the world's latest big-time collectible, they were just silly sketches made by Casing Lung, the Hong 01:16 Speaker A And as if the amount of money that people are spending on these things isn't shocking enough, there is real crime and violence breaking out because of these dolls. And once you see just how far people are willing to go for Lebu, you'll understand why this isn't just a dumb toy. It's a symptom of something much worse. 01:25 Speaker A In 2015, Lung decided to make his drawings into a short story for children that he called the Monsters Trilogy, telling a simple story about how a child meets a playful tribe of fictional female elves called the Laboo. That's 01:37 Speaker A Before Lebus became the world's latest big-time collectible, they were just silly sketches made by Casing Lung, the Hong Kong-born artist who spent a lot of his childhood in the Netherlands, becoming infatuated with Nordic fairy tales, especially the elves that were separated as beings of the dark and of the light. 01:48 Speaker A fans absolutely loved it. Many people are surprised to find out that the Lubu characters are supposed to be kind-hearted creatures that are eager to help, only for everything to erupt into chaos following their various funny antics. According to Lung, there are 02:01 Speaker A In 2015, Lung decided to make his drawings into a short story for children that he called the Monsters Trilogy, telling a simple story about how a child meets a playful tribe of fictional female elves called the Lebu. That's why I wanted to create something that I've always known existed in my heart, he said in an interview. "It's so amazing that so many people love it." 02:18 Speaker A Boo. But not everyone interprets Lubu seeming kind-hearted or acting like friendly bullies. For a lot of people, the teeth and sinister smiles really freak them out. I personally find them creepy and have no desire to have any of them for 02:31 Speaker A Shortly after, he released a handful of toys as an artistic trial run, and his fans absolutely loved it. Many people are surprised to find out that the Lebu characters are supposed to be kind-hearted creatures that are eager to help, only for everything to erupt into chaos following their various funny antics. According to Lung, there are over 100 different characters, each with different backstories and relationships, picking on or bullying each other in innocent ways. 02:37 Speaker A However, Labu did create a cult following which caught the attention of a Beijing based company called PopMart, a company known for blind box packaging. 02:45 Speaker A But not everyone interprets Lebu as seeming kind-hearted or acting like friendly bullies. For a lot of people, the teeth and sinister smiles really freak them out. I personally find them creepy and have no desire to have any of them for myself, family, or in my home. I don't understand why everyone else thinks it's cute when it's obviously creepy. 03:02 Speaker A surrounding these toys is not new. It's just new to America. And while the company does have some offerings where you can actually choose which one you're going to purchase, it primarily sells blind box figurines now, making up more 03:14 Speaker A However, Lebu did create a cult following which caught the attention of a Beijing-based company called PopMart, a company known for blind box packaging. 03:27 Speaker A On the external packaging, the customer can see a few different Laboos they might get. Maybe you will get the pink one. Maybe you will get the green one. 03:34 Speaker A PopMart and Lebu developed a licensing deal in 2019 and it changed the company forever. Shortly after their partnership was established, 55,000 boxes of the Lebu miniseries were sold out in 9 seconds on PopMart's online shop. And that was over 6 years ago. So, the hype surrounding these toys is not new. It's just new to America. 03:45 Speaker A purchase. And this could be one of the main reasons that is causing younger generations to collect more than they ever have before. In a survey conducted on 21st century collecting around the world, we've discovered that the average young adult spends almost $2,000 a year 03:59 Speaker A And while the company does have some offerings where you can actually choose which one you're going to purchase, it primarily sells blind box figurines now, making up more than 70% of their business. Blind boxes have been around for over 40 years in East Asia. It's just that recently they become America's largest obsession when it comes to collectible toys. 04:05 Speaker A As 90% of collectors have reported that they participate in activities revolving around these collections. People have unpacking events, forums where they share their collections, and sometimes base their entire personality around something like Laboo because it's a way to connect with the outside world. 04:21 Speaker A The concept is incredibly simple for businesses to get the consumer excited. On the external packaging, the customer can see a few different Lebus they might get. Maybe you will get the pink one. Maybe you will get the green one. 04:32 Speaker A same way as a typical theme park, including an adventure playground filled with climbing walls, nets, mazes, and trampolines. Guests can also feel what it's really like to live in the universe through the augmented reality immersions. And naturally, there are 04:45 Speaker A It even tells you the odds of getting them, one in six. But the key is putting the secret one there. It is grayed out, so it is a total mystery. The secret one has a 1 in 72 chance of being in your purchase. And this could be one of the main reasons that is causing younger generations to collect more than they ever have before. 04:57 Speaker A Journal teamed up with psychologist David Bosch to describe the impact blind boxes and Laboo have on consumers. To them, a lot of this has to do with the label showing a secret prize and the human compulsion to complete a set. One 05:10 Speaker A In a survey conducted on 21st-century collecting around the world, we've discovered that the average young adult spends almost $2,000 a year on collectibles and that more and more adults who aren't collectors are now considering joining in on these trends. 05:18 Speaker A That specific range also creates a set. It's well-known, wellsupported phenomenon that most people under certain conditions have a very strong tendency to want to complete a set. 05:30 Speaker A As 90% of collectors have reported that they participate in activities revolving around these collections. People have unpacking events, forums where they share their collections, and sometimes base their entire personality around something like Lebu because it's a way to connect with the outside world. 05:42 Speaker A toys in a segment of their show, Good Mythical Morning. Hold on. That was That's not That was not it. This is This one's special. Something Hold on. 05:52 Speaker A PopMart even opened their first theme park called Popland where people can come and celebrate their obsession with these blind box products together. One of the descriptions for the park reads, "There are a few spots to play in the same way as a typical theme park, including an adventure playground filled with climbing walls, nets, mazes, and trampolines. Guests can also feel what it's really like to live in the universe through the augmented reality immersions. And naturally, there are also plenty of places to stop to snap photos and videos for social media, which helped make the Lebus the stars they are today. 06:05 Speaker A What in the world? This is the most fun I've had in years. You can see that these blind box collectibles have an interesting impact on people. Even if they don't know what the toys are, why they're interesting, special, or even if 06:16 Speaker A When trying to get to the bottom of what they call the economics of Lebu, the Wall Street Journal teamed up with psychologist David Bosch to describe the impact blind boxes and Lebu have on consumers. To them, a lot of this has to do with the label showing a secret prize and the human compulsion to complete a set. One of the things that the brand can do to keep engagement to encourage consumers to get a little more excitement out of it is to label the box. 06:26 Speaker A Nothing creates hype more than the illusion of scarcity, the old classic. Low supply, high demand. However, what really started this Leubu craze was another classic modern-day marketing effort, paying a celebrity to endorse the product. Because just a few months 06:40 Speaker A That specific range also creates a set. It's a well-known, well-supported phenomenon that most people under certain conditions have a very strong tendency to want to complete a set. 06:55 Speaker A on Instagram. But she's been seriously climbing the industry ladder since 2016 after joining the girl group Blackpink. 07:01 Speaker A The concept of the blind box has become so popular that thousands of YouTubers have used it as a perceptually fun way to entertain themselves and fans at the same time. A good example would be how Rhett and Link looked for extremely rare toys in a segment of their show, Good Mythical Morning. 07:18 Speaker A 90 billion on demand streams with a 42% growth year-over-year. K-pop. They've also developed some of the most diehard cultlike fans on the internet. 07:28 Speaker A Hold on. That was—That's not—That was not it. This is—This one's special. Something—Hold on. 07:43 Speaker A spend hours translating interviews, subtitling videos, and archiving every second of a singer's life. To outsiders, it looks obsessive. It looks like the musician is at the center of a fan's entire identity. And sometimes they will attack anyone who criticizes them. But 07:58 Speaker A I got the one in. You got the Robbie. You got the Robbie. I can't believe. And Robbie came with a drum. 08:11 Speaker A cosmetics. So whenever she was asked to share her secret obsession with Vanity Fair's YouTube channel, anything she chose to promote was going to turn into pure gold. And in November of 2024, her obsession of choice was PopMart Collectibles. Hi, this is Lisa and this 08:26 Speaker A What in the world? This is the most fun I've had in years. 08:50 Speaker A the rare one. It's really hard to get. We call them secret. So, I always wish that I got secret. 08:59 Speaker A You can see that these blind box collectibles have an interesting impact on people. Even if they don't know what the toys are, why they're interesting, special, or even if they don't like the way that they look, once people realize they are rare, they start to attach value that isn't actually there. PopMart and Lebu's business model mostly relies on this. 09:11 Speaker A she couldn't stop herself from buying to unlock new characters. We call her labu. Okay. Oh my god, this is so heavy. 09:22 Speaker A Nothing creates hype more than the illusion of scarcity, the old classic: low supply, high demand. However, what really started this Lebu craze was another classic modern-day marketing effort, paying a celebrity to endorse the product. Because just a few months ago, one of the world's most famous K-pop stars, simply known as Lisa, sent the world into a frenzy after she confessed her love for Lebu. 09:43 Speaker A "Oh, let's go to PopMart." And I was like, "What is PopMart?" Like, "What?" And she's like, "Oh, it's like, you know, it's a sell toys and stuff. Like, we should go and check." And then I went with them and I was like, to be honest, 09:56 Speaker A Lisa is a Thai singer, rapper, dancer, and actress who became the most followed K-pop idol on Instagram. But she's been seriously climbing the industry ladder since 2016 after joining the girl group Blackpink. 10:02 Speaker A And they were like, "Oh my god, like the one that I want like it's sold out. It's so hard to get." I was like, "Hm, is that that hard to get?" And then they, you know, showed me a bunch of stuff. 10:16 Speaker A By now, K-pop isn't just a genre. It's a full-blown global movement. Streaming has skyrocketed with Spotify reporting a staggering 362% increase in K-pop streams worldwide over the past 5 years. The top 100 K-pop artists globally amassed a jaw-dropping 90 billion on-demand streams with a 42% growth year-over-year. K-pop. 10:23 Speaker A What's really sad is that people couldn't tell that this entire video is just one large paid advertisement, but it worked. After the seal of approval from Lisa, PopMart's share price has grown by almost 600% in just one year. 10:36 Speaker A They've also developed some of the most diehard cultlike fans on the internet. Fans will create entire Twitter accounts dedicated to a single idol, 10:51 Speaker A theirs attached to bags. Kim Kardashian posted an entire collection of them on Instagram. And Madonna received a Laboo birthday cake that is quite frankly one of the most terrifying looking things on the planet. And if celebrities aren't the ones purchasing Laboos for 11:05 Speaker A themselves, they're receiving them as gifts from friends or family members. Like how football legend David Beckham posted an image of an apparently rare find that he received from his daughter. 11:15 Speaker A These celebrity advertisements have been one of the key driving forces for Leubu's current obsession. And I feel like we must address the elephant in the room about how this thing looks incredibly evil. The sharp teeth, the unsettling grin, the slightly furrowing 11:29 Speaker A eyebrows. You can't help but notice this toy has a slightly demonic feel. No wonder why these Hollywood elites love this toy. It represents them perfectly. 11:37 Speaker A Celebrities have always mastered the art of appearing glamorous enough to worship, but approachable enough to trust. They present themselves as icons of beauty and innocence, while behind the scenes, they're laughing, squeezing every last dollar from the people who 11:51 Speaker A idolize them. Leubu is just the perfect prop for that illusion. A sinister little mascot hiding in plain sight, smiling as it drains your bank account. 12:00 Speaker A across all different social media platforms. Everyone in their mother has an unboxing video for PopMart's new favorite product, picking them up from one of the company's 500 plus stores or 2,000 plus vending machines around the world, eager to record themselves 12:13 Speaker A unboxing one for the first or 300th time. Right, here we go. Y'all ready for this? 12:23 Speaker A No. [Music] It's him. He's gorgeous. Oh my god. Can you believe the doll seemingly is no longer about whether you actually like the thing. 12:41 Speaker A It's about proving you belong to the exclusive club of people who have one. The doll itself is meaningless, but the association is priceless. People have convinced themselves that having one signals wealth and exclusivity. Even if all they did was pay retail price for a 12:56 Speaker A hunk of vinyl. I am the owner of the famous 24 karat gold leu. And of course now many buyers are trying to justify their purchase by saying it'll be worth more someday. But if history has taught us anything, it's 13:10 Speaker A that collectibles rarely pay off like people think they will. If you look back at your childhood, odds are you collected a little something. Maybe you did it because you loved it, or maybe you did it because everyone else was 13:21 Speaker A doing it. But ultimately, it didn't matter because it was just part of growing up. For me, it was Pokemon cards, WWE wrestlers, and Hot Wheels. 13:28 Speaker A For others, it could have been lunchboxes Barbies Beyblades Rocks or literally anything else. But now, collectors have become sellers. 13:37 Speaker A Collections are no longer to express their admiration for a passion or interest, but to auction them off for hundreds, thousands, or maybe even millions of dollars. They see collections as an investment, a way to get rich quickly. In fact, 40% of 13:51 Speaker A so-called collectors have openly expressed how they intend to sell their collections as they increase in value. 13:57 Speaker A And of course, there are tons of collections out there that have increased in value over time. But laboos are pretty new, and they're starting to seem like more of a flash in the pan trend that is reminiscent of Beanie 14:09 Speaker A Babies. In the late 1990s, Beanie Babies weren't just plush toys. They were marketed as miniature fortunes in the making. Tai Inc.'s strategy of artificially restricting supply by limiting retail orders and frequently retiring certain models created a frenzy where $5 stuffed animals were believed 14:26 Speaker A to become the next gold rush. At the peak of the mania, Beanie Babies accounted for roughly 10% of eBay's sales. We even saw full-grown adults separating Beanie Babies during a divorce. But all those people who hoarded these rare toys were 14:40 Speaker A disappointed to find out that they weren't worth anything. It doesn't matter that sellers listed them for thousands of dollars online. Even still to this day, you can find listings for hundreds of thousands of dollars. But things are only worth what someone is 14:54 Speaker A actually willing to pay. And the harsh reality was that nobody was buying. Not even the most reckless spenders could be convinced that these toys were rare or valuable. So, people ended up selling their Beanie Baby collections for dollars, sometimes even cents, at garage 15:08 Speaker A sales, which drove the value down even further. What was once perceived as a life-changing investment turned out to be nothing more than overpriced clutter. 15:16 Speaker A This is almost a fabric of American culture at this point. You'll see shows like Antiques Road Show, Pawn Stars, or American Pickers, where people drag out dusty items from their attic and pray they've been sitting on a fortune 15:28 Speaker A without even knowing it. The fantasy is irresistible. The idea that some random object you already own could secretly be worth thousands. It's the modern-day lottery ticket, except instead of scratching numbers, you're banking on nostalgia and rarity. But the 15:41 Speaker A uncomfortable truth is that most collectibles never hit the jackpot. For every person who sells a first edition comic for six figures, there are millions more who are left with boxes of junk that they swore would pay off one 15:53 Speaker A day. Even though we're still at the peak of the craze, occasionally you might see videos online where a collector recognizes that they might be spending a little too much money on Lab Boooos. But then you'll find investment gurus in 16:05 Speaker A denial justifying the purchases in the comments. They're actually worth more than $120, so you got lucky. The scary part is because of the Laboo popularity, we're no longer just talking about overpriced toys. We're talking about an obsession that's bleeding into real life 16:20 Speaker A in some very dark ways. Like how parents will give their own children a choice between hundreds of dollars or a Laboo blind box only for the kid who receives the money to almost break down in tears. 16:32 Speaker A even though they end up buying a giant Leaboo with the money they were given. 16:36 Speaker A Now, to give the kids the benefit of the doubt, they're kids. They don't know the value of money. Of course, they want a toy. However, there is no excuse for the full grown men who will buy up as many 16:46 Speaker A Lubu products as they can in order to resell them to children and other collectors for a much higher rate. And they have the audacity to claim that they're just passionate collectors. Um, we got a lot of slack on Instagram, but 16:58 Speaker A because of how much stock we have, oh, you took all our stock we're collected and we want a box and you're triple the price and this and that. But unfortunately, people don't understand how a business model works, you know. 17:08 Speaker A No, no, no, no, no. People perfectly understand how the business model works. You try and squat on as much inventory as possible so there's scarcity and then people have FOMO, so they want to make sure they get it. So, they'll play 17:20 Speaker A they'll pay the extra markup that you just drive the price through the roof. They came and shopped with me two weeks ago. Bought labubas for the kids. 17:27 Speaker A Someone stole her labuba from her bag. You're kidding. Yes. At school. Tough. And then I speak to my daughter. 17:33 Speaker A Labuba robbery. Capital punishment required. Every generation. We're stealing our kids, bro. It's not normal. Not normal. So yeah, I told her take all the boobs. 17:41 Speaker A Unfortunately, it is very normal now. It's super normal now. When grown adults are exploiting children for profit, it's only a matter of time before the obsession spills into outright theft and violence. In Southern California, a small group of teenagers were suspected 17:57 Speaker A of breaking into a warehouse and stealing some inventory. When the Chino SoCal police received a warrant to raid the house the supposed thieves were staying at, they weren't looking for electronics or jewelry. They were searching for about 14 boxes of Labubu 18:11 Speaker A collectibles that the alleged thieves were intending on reselling on the black market. According to the report, the cops recovered $30,000 worth of the furry figurines, which usually retail for about $30 each. In the same story, the LA Times noted that the prices for 18:26 Speaker A labu due to scarcity are reaching all-time highs. The figurines are usually sold at PopMart stores and create a fervor whenever new ones are released. A child-sized Laboo sold at auction for $150,000, according to media reports, and limited edition monsters can retail for 150 18:42 Speaker A bucks. But the criminality doesn't stop at theft. There's now a growing scheme where people will make counterfeit labu, now named lfufus, that is becoming such a large problem that people are making instructional videos to help customers inspect leoos like diamonds at a jewelry 18:58 Speaker A store to avoid being scammed. Every Laboo should have exactly nine teeth. No more, no less. Like this one, you can count. It has 10 teeth. Here are a few other ways we can tell. If you look at the original Laboo's complexion, 19:10 Speaker A she has kind of a peachy pink tone to her skin. Whereas, if you look at the lfufu, this one in particular has a paler complexion. 19:16 Speaker A Popart told us you can also identify a labubu by their high quality finishes, such as the stitching and the paint job. 19:22 Speaker A One obvious way you can tell a lfu from a leubu is the spelling on the tags. 19:26 Speaker A Lubu will say PopMart on the tag, whereas this specific Lefufu says poor mapped. I do like it when they're very obvious. 19:34 Speaker A Whether PopMart will admit it or not, they're definitely enjoying all forms of press, even if it's bad. All publicity is good publicity in the world of politics and sales because at the end of the day we only have ourselves to blame. 19:46 Speaker A Tim Dylan hilariously summarize the depressing reality of the labu obsession in America. The labubu is the perfect symbol of uh the economy that we've created and the cultural value system that we have. It is a Chinese fentinol stuffed voodoo doll that is being uh 20:03 Speaker A exported to America. Little things like the leubu become an important status symbol for people who have given up on owning a home, having a family, having a job or a meaningful life. The adults, their eyes get big. You've got one of 20:20 Speaker A them. I want one of them. What? A family? No. That demon doll, that troll, that critter. One minute we're having honest conversations about how young people can't start a family, buy a two-bedroom house, or even spend time with those that we care about. And in 20:35 Speaker A the next, we have hundreds of thousands of people going into debt to buy a trinket because their favorite celebrity said it was cool. But as I stare more at these evil looking little things, I can't help but recognize that it's the 20:47 Speaker A perfect reflection of a system that thrives on manipulation, that manufactures scarcity, that entices children and adults to pour money into something that has absolutely no value. 20:56 Speaker A The doll looks demonic because in a way it's a symbol of how dark consumer culture has become. And the scariest part isn't the doll itself. It's what it says about us. That our society has to be this desperate, this easily 21:08 Speaker A hypnotized for something so empty to become such a massive success. Topics: Labubu PopMart blind box collectibles consumer culture mindless consumption Casing Lung toys collecting craze psychology of collecting --- This is the markdown twin of https://sozai.app/transcript/labubu-everything-wrong-society/ — the same content, without the markup. Published by SozAI (https://sozai.app). 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